


Addicted to this boy

by Merit



Category: DCU
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-03-28
Updated: 2014-03-28
Packaged: 2018-01-17 07:43:55
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,762
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1379530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merit/pseuds/Merit
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One week until graduation. One week until Tim wouldn't have his crush in his face every day. One week.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Addicted to this boy

Tim didn’t mean to start looking. But once he started, it was hard to stop.

“Lusting after seniors is silly,” Stephanie said, poking Tim in the shoulder. “Graduation is only one week away!”

“I wasn’t – I’m not,” Tim said, ducking his head because he knew he was blushing furiously. He really had to get better at being discrete. Stephanie always caught him at his most embarrassing moments. Stephanie gave him a knowing look and wriggled her eyebrows obnoxiously. “You’re the worst,” he muttered.

She sighed and folded her arms on their lunch table, giving him another pointed look and she rested her head on her arms. “I’m the worst? What about all our awful teachers? Have you seen our summer reading list? I’m going to die by book.”

“We’re juniors next year,” Tim said, a bit more prissily than he intended. “It’ll be much worse next year. We’ll have our SATs.”

“Ugh,” Stephanie groaned. “Maybe I should just drop out and become a waitress. I’m cute. I think I could get decent tips.”

“But will you be cute forever?” Tim asked, grinning at her.

Stephanie pouted and poked him again. “Don’t think I’ve forgotten,” she said, jerking her head in the direction of his crush. Tim shiftily looked in the same direction. At that moment Dick Grayson burst into laughter, his eyes crinkling, his face alit with joy. “You do have good taste,” Stephanie said, patting him on the shoulder. “Most popular boy in the school and he’s not a raging asshole. Who would have guessed? We would make a terrible teen comedy.”

“We’re some B rate comedy at best,” Tim said his voice very dry.

Stephanie rolled her eyes. “Hey. At least try for art house pretension.”

Tim snorted. “Maybe.”

And just like before his gaze drifted and he was staring at the very handsome Dick Grayson again. Whose eyes had met his! Dick raised a hand in greeting and through the crowded and noisy cafeteria, Tim could have sworn he said, _hi_. Tim half raised his hand just as a friend of Dick’s, he thought his name was Roy, tackled Dick, ticking him madly. Tim’s cheeks went hot again and he flopped down on the cold table.

Only one more week, he thought. One more week and he wouldn’t be tormented by daily Dick Grayson sightings. One more week and Dick Grayson would leave high school forever. One more week until graduation.

 

* * *

 

There were some days Tim regretted hacking (though he didn’t think guessing that the password was _password1_ was really hacking) into the school and making sure that year after year, he was assigned a locker right next to Dick Grayson. Days like this, when a pretty girl was whispering sweet nothings, or so Tim assumed, into Dick’s ear, was just a bit irritating.

Tim sighed. Dick looked up and smiled. Tim tried desperately to ignore the beat of his heart. It was stupid, always beating faster when Dick smiled at him.

“Oh! Tim, sorry, sorry,” he said, moving off the locker and flourishing as if presenting Tim with a great prize. “Your locker, kind sir.”

“Thanks,” Tim murmured.

“We are sorry, Tim,” said Koriand’r though everyone usually called her Kory. She was a foreign exchange student and one of the hottest girls in school. She and Dick had an on and off relationship. Though, Tim thought, as he grimly opened his locker, it was probably more on again now.

“It’s alright,” he said, taking out his Biology book and looking up at Kory. She beamed at him. Dick looked awkward next to her, eyes skittering away from Tim’s when Tim looked at him.

“We were just discussing love,” she said, her green eyes warm. This close even her breath smelled like flowers. Steph would be jealous.

“Great,” Tim said in a monotone. These are the best years of your life; Tim intoned to himself and wondered if anyone actually felt that way.

“Uh yeah,” Dick said, rubbing the back of his head and grinning sheepishly at Tim.

Tim blinked. This wasn’t the first time he had caught Dick monopolising his locker – Kory, Barbara, even Roy once in a while, and Tim was definitely noticing a redhead theme – but this was the first time that Dick looked embarrassed.

“I’ll leave you to it, then?” Tim said coolly. He closed his locker with a bit more force than necessary and Dick flinched at the noise.

“Tim, wait!” Dick called after him.

It would have looked cool to walk off without responding, Tim supposed, but he wasn’t a douche bag. He stopped and waited. Dick walked up to him, smiling, something warm and tentative.

“Graduation is in a week,” he said, “And they’re all telling us to remember our greatest moments here. Cherish our friends because who knows when we will be together again. Even Bruce wants me to remember these times,” he ducked his head and up close Tim could see flecks of gold in his blue, blue eyes. He swallowed hard and tried not to notice that he had never been this _close_ to Dick before. If he breathed in, he would be breathing in Dick. “I don’t want to go off to college with any regrets,” Dick said.

“That makes sense,” Tim said.

Dick smiled. “Yeah! So I’m hosting a party, for all my friends from high school. It took months of begging for Bruce to allow it but once Alfred was on my side, Bruce gave up,” Dick grinned. “Do you wanna come, Tim? You can bring your pretty girlfriend as well,” he added.

“My what? My girlfriend?” Tim said, blinking rapidly.

“The blonde girl you always eat lunch with,” Dick said, looking a bit bemused that he had to remind Tim.

“Steph?” Tim said and he would apologise to Stephanie later for sounding so aghast. “We’re friends,” he said firmly.

“I could have sworn you were dating,” Dick murmured, eyes narrowing as he looked into the distance. “Barbara is never wrong about these things.”

Tim snorted. “Well it is not exactly a lie. We did date. For two weeks when we were freshmen so I don’t think it really counts,” Tim said. Freshman year was basically a blot in his memory due to the ravages of puberty. Tim had only just recovered.

“Ha, right, yeah she must have still thought you were together,” Dick said, though it was plain that he doubted that. Tim could imagine. Dick may be the most popular boy in school but Barbara Gordon was impossibly cool. If you could be in love with someone’s intellect, then Tim was in love with Barbara. “So,” he said, stretching the word out and staring at Tim warmly. “Did you want to come?”

 

* * *

 

“I can’t believe we’re going,” Tim said, shuffling his way up the long, long Wayne Manor drive.

Stephanie shoved him, nearly causing him to trip. He glared at her. He didn’t want to object that he wanted to look his best for Dick though.

“Stop complaining,” she said cheerfully. “You said yes, so we’re going. Plus! Dick Grayson invited us to a party at Wayne Manor, of course we’re going. I don’t care if you have a crush – ”

“Stop,” Tim said weakly.

“You really like the guy, don’t you?” Stephanie said softly.

“Yeah,” Tim said, lowering his head. The jeans were a bad idea, he though angrily. They were way too tight. Who was he thinking of impressing?

“Hey,” she said, slinging an arm across his shoulders. “I know you’re putting yourself down. Stop that.”

“I hate how you can always tell,” Tim griped.

She shrugged. “One of my many talents. But hey. We can go home. I’ll give my mom a call. She’s probably just around the corner. We can get pizza. I have some drinks stashed in my room so we totally can get tipsy and watch bad science movies!”

“I have been meaning to watch _Sharkado_ ,” Tim said, giving in easily.

“Tim!” Dick said, foiling that idea because life was unfair and refused to allow Tim to have a quiet night. Dick was smiling grandly from the now opened door to Wayne Manor. “I’m so glad you could come,” he called out, because Tim and Steph were still a fair distance away from the Manor.

“It would probably look worse if we left now,” Steph muttered into his ear.

Tim ground his teeth and nodded, raising one hand and waving at Dick. “Ah, just coming now!”

As they made the final steps up to Wayne Manor, Tim urging the ground to swallow him, he saw Barbara Gordon appear by Dick’s side. She murmured something, something the wind took away before Tim could her. But Dick blushed and looked down.

She was grinning smugly as Tim and Steph walked up the stairs. She looked Tim over accessingly before nodding. “I liked your science fair project,” she said, eyes mysterious behind her yellow tinted glasses.

“He spent three weeks sanding down the rocks,” Stephanie said brightly.

Still smiling slightly, Barbara nodded, “I’ll see you inside,” she said to Dick, and then she wheeled her way back into the Manor. Steph followed, her face begging forgiveness when she left Tim alone with Dick Grayson.

“Did you get here easily?” Dick asked, shoving his hands into his pockets. Tim wondered how he managed to do that. They looked very tight. He swallowed and looked away.

“Steph’s mom dropped us off,” Tim said, cursing Gotham’s strict rules regarding driving. Who ever thought it was a good idea only to allow licences to people seventeen and up?

“Lots of people are staying over,” Dick said, ducking his head. “Alfred has basically prepared for a battalion to stay in the ballroom.”

“This place has a ballroom?” Tim said.

“It hasn’t been used in decades, probably not since Bruce’s parents were alive,” Dick said, walking into the house and gesturing for Tim to follow. Tim slowly followed, after carefully wiping his shoes on the mat. “Alfred is going to love you for that,” Dick said, smiling easily.

“Just being polite,” Tim muttered.

“I like that,” Dick said. “The party is being held in the some of the parlours. Don’t ask me which one, I’m most familiar with ice cream parlours.” As they walked deeper into Wayne Manor, Tim could start to hear the _thud, thud_ of music playing. “Hey,” Dick said, his voice lowering a couple of notches.

“Yeah?” Tim said.

“I want to show you something,” Dick said, grabbing his wrist and dragging him up a staircase, away from the music, away from the noise, away from the people. Then just as suddenly he let go of Tim’s wrist like it was red hot. “I shouldn’t have grabbed you like that,” he said, sounding miserable.

Tim took a deep breath and gently massaged the skin where Dick had touched him. “It’s alright,” he said, trying to be super casual about this. He skipped up a couple stairs, past Dick. “You said you wanted to show me something?”

Dick’s smile was nearly blinding. Tim ducked his head as Dick excitedly started to walk up the staircase again.

 

* * *

 

Something turned out to be a glorious view of Gotham out of one Wayne Manor’s towers.

“Gotham almost looks beautiful from here,” Dick said.

Not looking away from the bright lights, Tim said, “It is. All of Gotham is. Yeah, there’s Crime Alley and the docks, but Gotham is beautiful.”

“I think so too,” Dick said.

Tim leaned forward, resting his arms on the balcony. “It must be tough then, leaving Gotham.” He was proud of how nonchalant he sounded.

“What?” Dick exclaimed, Tim shot him a look under lowered lashes. Dick was shaking his head. “I’m not. I’m going to Gotham U. Partly because they have a program I’m interested in, partly because I think Bruce and Alfred need me a bit longer,” he shrugged. “So Gotham isn’t going to be getting rid of me so quickly.”

Tim had been banking on Dick leaving Gotham. If your crush was in another city, he had thought, it would make getting over them quicker.

“What university do you want to go to?” Dick asked.

“I haven’t decided,” Tim said.

Dick laughed. “You’ll have your pick, won’t you?” He said fondly, resting a hand on Tim’s shoulder briefly but snatching it away before Tim could soak in his touch. “You’re the smartest kid in school.”

“Well,” Tim said, “After graduation I might be. Before then I think Barbara was number one.”

“She usually is,” Dick said.

“It must be tough,” Tim said, staring down at his nails, where he had bitten them raw earlier that night. “She’ll be leaving.”

“She’s going to Gotham U as well,” Dick murmured. “She’s always talked highly of their library sciences masters program.”

“You’ll be happy together,” Tim said stiffly.

“Barbara and I are just good friends,” Dick said. “After all the drama of sophomore and junior year,” he shrugged. “A romantic relationship wasn’t for us. But,” and Dick’s eyes lit up. “We seem to be doing that don’t we? Confusing each other’s friendships for romance.”

Tim’s breath caught in his throat. “A coincidence.”

“Hmm,” Dick hummed thoughtfully. “Do you mind if I kiss you, Tim?”

“Mind?” Because Tim couldn’t think of anything else to say to that. “Is this some kind of joke?”

“No! I’m not that type of person, Tim,” Dick said and his voice at least sounded sincere. “Oh I’ve really fucked this up, haven’t I? Barbara said you wanted to do, uh, things to me,” even in the moonlight, Tim could see his cheeks redden, “But I should have known - ”

Dick was just going to beat himself up with words. So Tim did was he rarely did and let his body do the talking. It was awkward at first, because Dick had been rambling on but Dick soon realised his intent and quickly kissed him back, warm and intense. Dick kissed with such joy, such passion behind every lick, and every nip of Tim’s lower lip. He shuffled closer to Tim, pushing him against the firm line of the balcony.

He placed his hands on Tim’s hips, tugging him just a fraction closer. Dick pulled back, breathing deeply and pressed his forehead against Tim. They were both getting hard.

“I’ve wanted to do that for weeks,” Dick breathed.

It was almost too much to believe. Tim ducked his head, resting it in the perfect place where Dick’s neck met his shoulder.

“There you are! The whole party is wondering – ohh,” Roy coughed. “Gotcha!” He said, “Thumbs up. I’ll tell everyone that you’re _occupied_ ,” he said and winked salaciously.

He left as quickly as he came and made obscene gestures as he did.

Dick sighed. “Mood ruined,” he muttered. Tim shrugged minutely. It still felt pretty good in Dick’s arms to him.

“But he’s right,” Dick sighed. “I am technically the host and I did promise Bruce I wouldn’t let things get out of hand. I can only imagine what Jason is getting up,” he shuddered and pulled away from Tim. “We’re good?”

“Yeah,” Tim said, smiling.

“It’s going to be a fun summer,” Dick said. Then he kissed Tim again, lips hot, mouth wet. His hands were rubbing Tim, feather light touches that drove him _mad_. He tucked his fingers in the waistband of Tim’s jeans and pressed his fingers there. Tim quivered, gripping onto Dick’s elbows, fingers digging into strong flesh.

Dick pulled away when a loud crash echoed through Wayne Manor. He closed his eyes, smiling his apologies at Tim. “I’ll call you,” he said, and then he adjusted himself in his jeans.

I did that, Tim thought, staring at Dick through heavy lidded eyes.

“You don’t have my number,” Tim said.

“I have my ways,” Dick said, winking.

Tim nodded, licking his lower lip.

Dick bit his lip. “Don’t make it worse,” he pleaded and then dashed down the stairs.

Tim took a deep breath and decided to stay up here for a few more minutes. The air was cool on his heated skin and Gotham did look beautiful from up here. He smiled into the night, not caring that he looked a bit like a love sick fool.

 

* * *

 

Steph’s mom picked them up after midnight. Steph and Tim collapsed into the back seat.

“Good night?” Steph’s mom asked.

Steph grinned. She had teased when he had emerged, red lips and mussed hair.

Tim smiled. “Yeah,” he said and watched Wayne Manor grow smaller in his window. He had a feeling he would be seeing it a lot this summer.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for trope_bingo for the space au: high school.


End file.
